US backs adding teeth to global shark protection

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - The United States (US) said on Friday it would support proposals to curb the trade of five shark species and manta rays, whose numbers are declining because of demand for fins and gills.

"For several decades, we have been increasingly concerned about the over harvest of sharks and manta rays," US Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe said in a meeting at the United Nations, according to a statement.

Mr Ashe will lead a delegation to Bangkok in March to attend a conference of parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites), which is set to consider the new measures.

"We believe that Cites is a valuable tool to address the threats posed by unsustainable global trade in shark fins and other marine species and their parts and products."